Urging the Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) status with Vietnam will remain one of the first priorities of the US trade agenda and is sure to be passed by the US Congress this December, chairman of the US Chamber of Commerce Susan Schwab has said.
Vietnam’s trade bill tops Washington’s trade policies and AmCham’s trade agenda, followed by concluding the bilateral trade agreements with Peru, Columbia, Panama, South Korea and Malaysia, the trade envoy emphasized.
The Bush administration recently expressed optimism that passage of PNTR with Vietnam will be realized next month, Schwab noted.
The AmCham leader also underlined benefits of strengthening trade ties with foreign countries, attaching importance to resumption of the Doha negotiation round while calling on the US Congress to push aside divisions and approve trade bills with its partners, including Vietnam.
“This could benefit all countries - large and small, rich and poor,” the AmCham leader reaffirmed in her speech themed “The Non-Partisan Imperatives for Trade”, touching on specific aspects of the administration’s trade agenda for the 2007-2008 period, with the Doha Round being the first imperative promoted.
Susan said that the US should strive for a multilateral agreement to open up new trade flows in agricultural goods, industrial products and services
The Democrats taking over both the House and Senate will not dampen the White House’s iron will to normalize trade ties with the outside world, Susan Schwab assured, rejecting growing concerns about the Bush administration reiterating trade subsidies.
The White House hopes it will receive support from the Congress.
Vietnam & World Economy, The People
Vietnamese
